Congratulations Colson Whitehead and Matthew Desmond!

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A powerful tale of racial tyranny and liberation and a piercing examination of the human toll of poverty in America have been named the 2017 Carnegie Medal winners for fiction and nonfiction. Colson Whitehead's novel The Underground Railroad is a tour de force chronicling the adventures of smart and resilient Cora, a young third-generation slave who escapes the brutality of a Georgia cotton plantation and seeks sanctuary throughout the terrorized South. Matthew Desmond’s Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City exposes the harrowing stories of people who find themselves in bad situations, shining a light on how eviction sets people up to fail.

The shortlisted authors and eventual winners of the Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fction and Nonfiction reflect the expertise of a selection committee of library professionals from across the country who work closely with adult readers.

Announced on January 22 during a celebratory event at the American Library’s Association’s Midwinter Meeting in Atlanta, the selections reflect the expert judgment and insight of library professionals who work closely with adult readers. "I would like to extend my congratulations to this year's winners of the highly coveted Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence in Fiction and Nonfiction," said ALA President Julie Todaro. "Librarians and library workers are in the unique position of serving as the community's book reviewers, book club coordinators and discussion leaders, and literary change agents. Today's selections are examples of how our nation's librarians share their expertise with adult readers who are looking for the very best in fiction and nonfiction titles. I look forward to finding today's selections within library and bookstore collections for many years to come."

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The Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence in Fiction and Nonfiction recognize the best books for adult readers published in the United States the previous year. Established in 2012, the awards are funded through a grant from Carnegie Corporation of New York in recognition of Andrew Carnegie’s deep belief in the power of books and learning to change the world, and are cosponsored by the American Library Association’s Booklist and the Reference and User Services Association.

Read more about the winners, the four finalists, and the awards on the ALA website.

As Americans prepare to go to the polls for the 2018 midterm elections, a new report from the National Academy of Sciences highlights the threat of disruption from cyberattacks on electoral infrastructure across the country.